How '127 Hours' inspired man with broken leg to survive for four days in desert

A man, who broke his leg, crawled for four days across the Utah desert, after being inspired by a movie 127 Hours, which portrayed a man who cut off his own arm to save himself after being trapped by a boulder in the same canyon.

Concord- based Amos Wayne Richards, 64, who fell 10 feet into the Little Blue John Canyon during his hiking adventure, is now recovering from leg injury at home, the Telegraph reports.

Richards,who was stranded in a desert without a mobile phone service survived on only two protein bars and rain water.

Canyonlands National Park Rangers found Richards after four days of his accident, when he flashed his camera at their helicopter, after crawling to reach his car.

"I was actually following my GPS, crawling right on top of my feet print that I had hiked in on," Richards said.

Canyonlands and Arches national parks Chief Ranger Denny Ziemann said they started searching for Richards after they came across his abandoned campsite, and they discovered his car two days later at the Little Blue John Canyon’s trailhead.

 Ziemann said Richards could have suffered a more serious injury because he went hiking alone and without informing anybody.

"We make a lot of rescues of people, but we usually know where they are.They were either hiking with somebody and got hurt or if they were hiking alone, they told people where they were going," he said.

In 2003, climber Aron Ralston hiked into the same canyon without telling anyone his plans.

He was forced to cut off his own arm after being trapped by a boulder. The incident was later adapted into the Oscar-nominated film 127 Hours.